System and method for the automatic configuration of devices by remote communication with a server

ABSTRACT

A system and method comprising a server that automatically configures and sets up a restaurant&#39;s or business&#39; information technology (IT) infrastructure, more specifically relating to point-of-sale devices (POS) and other networked devices such as scanners, tracking displays, and any other device that any business may use. Communication between the networked devices and the server is facilitated by a preconfigured router, wherein after initial communication with the server, the server may update firmware, operating parameters, and software packages of the preconfigured router and other networked devices.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS Application Ser. No. Date FiledTitle Current Herewith A SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR THE application AUTOMATICCONFIGURATION OF DEVICES BY REMOTE COMMUNICATION WITH A SERVER Claimsbenefit of; and priority to: 63/119,748 Dec. 1, 2020 SYSTEM AND METHODFOR CONFIGURATION OF RESTAURANT DEVICES BY REMOTE COMMUNICATION WITH APRECONFIGRED NETWORK ROUTER the entire specification of each of which isincorporated herein by by reference.

BACKGROUND Field of the Art

The disclosure relates to the field of computer setup, and moreparticularly to the field of remote setup of computing devices throughthe use of pre-generated or factory-made instructions shared through anetwork router.

Discussion of the State of the Art

In information technology, it is commonplace currently to ship deviceswith pre-installed software, with factory settings. This is known in theart sometimes as “factory defaults” or “factory default settings,” and“vendor software,” and the enterprise segment of the market is nodifferent, shipping devices with pre-installed software—sometimes whicha client or customer may pick prior to ordering, but sometimes whichcomes in predefined hardware-software packages—such as many desktops andlaptops purchased from computer vendors. There are difficulties andlimitations with this style of designing and shipping customer ordersfor computing devices. If a business is in need of a specificconfiguration of software that is non-standard or specialized in someway, or needs a group of devices to have a specific networkingimplementation installed and pre-configured, this is often not possible,but in the few cases it is possible, it is the case that the devicesship with the software and configurations, limiting the options of whatis available for the customer. A customer may not, for instance, usetheir own hardware or devices, or design their own device configurationswith this software, and then have it installed and configured for theirneeds, so that they are not required to have much networking or softwarecustomization and configuration knowledge. This is especially the casefor restaurants, an entire industry which is slow to adopt technicalchanges due to the tremendous lack of ready-made and well-understoodinnovations in the space, despite the fact that numerous possibleinnovations in Point-Of-Sale (“POS”) systems and online ordering havebeen made in recent years. It is more common for such services to beabstracted away from the restaurants entirely, such as with UBER EATS™simply supplying the online ordering and delivery themselves.Integration of new systems for a restaurant where they frequently haveno dedicated IT staff and limited understanding of complex computingsystems, and when they may not have the resources to purchase all-newsystems rather than use their already-operating POS systems, aredifficult.

What is needed is a system and method that can automatically configuredevices for merchants, automatically perform updates, and prioritize POStransactions over a compartmentalized network.

SUMMARY

Accordingly, the inventor has conceived and reduced to practice, asystem and method for configuration of restaurant devices by remotecommunication with a preconfigured network router, comprising a server,text message relay server, Point-Of-Sale (“POS”) device, mobile device,and a network router, whereby the server and network router communicateover a Virtual Private Network (“VPN”) when the network router isplugged in and connected to the Internet, the network routercommunicates with the POS device or devices and sets up a local networksuch as a Local Area Network (“LAN”) with the POS device or devices, andthe server communicates to the network router instructions orauthorization to execute pre-packaged instructions to set up the POSdevice or devices for the business.

According to a first embodiment, a system for the automaticconfiguration of devices by remote communication with a server isdisclosed, comprising: a merchant database, wherein an account for amerchant is stored, each merchant account comprises authenticationcredentials and contact information; a preconfigured router; a servercomprising at least a first plurality of programming instructions storedin the at least one memory of, and operating on at least one processorof, the computer system, wherein the first plurality of programminginstructions, when operating on the at least one processor, causes thecomputer system to: retrieve the merchant account from the merchantdatabase; and

send the merchant account to a QR module; a QR module, comprising afirst plurality of programming instructions stored in the memory andoperating on the processor, wherein the first plurality of programminginstructions, when operating on the processor, causes the computersystem to: generate a QR code for the merchant comprising authenticationcredentials; a messaging service, comprising a second plurality ofprogramming instructions stored in the memory and operating on theprocessor, wherein the second plurality of programming instructions,when operating on the processor, causes the computer system to: receivea notification of a successful delivery of physical devices to amerchant, wherein the notification triggers the messaging service to:generate a message comprising the QR code; and transmit the message tothe merchant using the merchant's contact information, wherein themerchant subsequently scans the QR code; a network manager, comprising athird plurality of programming instructions stored in the memory andoperating on the processor, wherein the third plurality of programminginstructions, when operating on the processor, causes the computersystem to: receive the authentication credentials; and initialize acompartmentalized network between the merchant and the server throughthe preconfigured router; and a software manager, comprising a fourthplurality of programming instructions stored in the memory and operatingon the processor, wherein the fourth plurality of programminginstructions, when operating on the processor, causes the computersystem to: send new wireless operating parameters to the preconfiguredrouter over the compartmentalized network; and send customized softwarepackages to networked devices.

According to a second embodiment, a method for the automaticconfiguration of devices by remote communication with a server,comprising the steps of: receiving a notification of a successfuldelivery of physical devices to a merchant; generating a QR code from amerchant profile, the merchant profile comprising authenticationcredentials and contact information of the merchant; generating amessage comprising the QR code; transmitting the message to the merchantusing the merchant's contact information; receiving the authenticationcredentials; initializing a compartmentalized network between themerchant and the server; sending new wireless operating parameters to anetworked device; and sending customized software packages to anetworked device.

According to various embodiments; the QR code further comprises a linkto download an application and the application automatically connects tothe preconfigured router; the wireless operating parameters include newrouter firmware; the software manager sends periodic software updates tothe networked devices; the customized software packaged are dependent onthe purpose of the networked device.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIGURES

The accompanying drawings illustrate several aspects and, together withthe description, serve to explain the principles of the inventionaccording to the aspects. It will be appreciated by one skilled in theart that the particular arrangements illustrated in the drawings aremerely exemplary, and are not to be considered as limiting of the scopeof the invention or the claims herein in any way.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating one embodiment of a system forremote configuration of networked devices by a server through apreconfigured router.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a system and method for remoteconfiguration of networked devices by a server through a preconfiguredrouter.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a system for configuration ofrestaurant devices by remote communication with a preconfigured networkrouter, according to one aspect.

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of restaurant devicesby remote communication with a preconfigured network router, with arules engine dictating setup server behavior according to anotheraspect.

FIG. 5 is a method diagram illustrating a network router being unpackedand set up, and communicating with a setup server.

FIG. 6 is a method diagram illustrating a setup server communicatingwith a network router, the network router then communicating with andsetting up and configuring connected POS devices.

FIG. 7 is a method diagram illustrating the function of a setup server,according to an aspect.

FIG. 8 is a method diagram illustrating the function of a text messagerelay server, as used to relay text messages from a server desiring tosend them and a recipient who may or may not be a mobile device capableof ordinarily receiving short message service messages, according to apreferred embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a method diagram illustrating a network router setting up aVirtual Private Network and connecting to a setup server, and connectingto local POS devices, according to an embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a method diagram illustrating a POS device operating as oneof several possible device types in a restaurant, and receiving data tobe set up and configured as per instruction from a network router,according to a preferred embodiment.

FIG. 11 is a method diagram illustrating steps taken by a rules engineto filter and control access to and responses from a setup server,according to one embodiment.

FIG. 12 is a message flow diagram illustrating messages exchanged in thefunction of a system for configuration of restaurant devices by remotecommunication with a preconfigured network router, according to anembodiment.

FIG. 13 is a message flow diagram illustrating messages exchanged in thefunction of a system for configuration of restaurant devices by remotecommunication with a preconfigured network router, using QR codes toscan data rather than an activation link sent to a user, according to anembodiment.

FIG. 14 is a message flow diagram illustrating messages exchanged in thefunction of a system for configuration of restaurant devices by remotecommunication with a preconfigured network router, using a rules engine,according to an embodiment.

FIG. 15 is a block diagram illustrating an exemplary hardwarearchitecture of a computing device.

FIG. 16 is a block diagram illustrating an exemplary logicalarchitecture for a client device.

FIG. 17 is a block diagram showing an exemplary architecturalarrangement of clients, servers, and external services.

FIG. 18 is another block diagram illustrating an exemplary hardwarearchitecture of a computing device.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The inventor has conceived, and reduced to practice, a system and methodfor configuration of restaurant devices by remote communication with apreconfigured network router. For simple understanding, this documentdiscloses using short message service (SMS) for one type ofcommunication between the server and various business devices or clientmobile devices. While SMS is used extensively herein, it is to beunderstood that past, current, and future messaging services may be usedand that embodiments are not limited to SMS. Examples of some othercommunication services may be multimedia messaging, push notifications,In-app messages, Facebook messaging, Skype, WhatsApp, iMessage, Discord,Internet-relay-chat (IRC), email, etc.

One or more different aspects may be described in the presentapplication. Further, for one or more of the aspects described herein,numerous alternative arrangements may be described; it should beappreciated that these are presented for illustrative purposes only andare not limiting of the aspects contained herein or the claims presentedherein in any way. One or more of the arrangements may be widelyapplicable to numerous aspects, as may be readily apparent from thedisclosure. In general, arrangements are described in sufficient detailto enable those skilled in the art to practice one or more of theaspects, and it should be appreciated that other arrangements may beutilized and that structural, logical, software, electrical and otherchanges may be made without departing from the scope of the particularaspects. Particular features of one or more of the aspects describedherein may be described with reference to one or more particular aspectsor figures that form a part of the present disclosure, and in which areshown, by way of illustration, specific arrangements of one or more ofthe aspects. It should be appreciated, however, that such features arenot limited to usage in the one or more particular aspects or figureswith reference to which they are described. The present disclosure isneither a literal description of all arrangements of one or more of theaspects nor a listing of features of one or more of the aspects thatmust be present in all arrangements.

Headings of sections provided in this patent application and the titleof this patent application are for convenience only, and are not to betaken as limiting the disclosure in any way.

Devices that are in communication with each other need not be incontinuous communication with each other, unless expressly specifiedotherwise. In addition, devices that are in communication with eachother may communicate directly or indirectly through one or morecommunication means or intermediaries, logical or physical.

A description of an aspect with several components in communication witheach other does not imply that all such components are required. To thecontrary, a variety of optional components may be described toillustrate a wide variety of possible aspects and in order to more fullyillustrate one or more aspects. Similarly, although process steps,method steps, algorithms or the like may be described in a sequentialorder, such processes, methods and algorithms may generally beconfigured to work in alternate orders, unless specifically stated tothe contrary. In other words, any sequence or order of steps that may bedescribed in this patent application does not, in and of itself,indicate a requirement that the steps be performed in that order. Thesteps of described processes may be performed in any order practical.Further, some steps may be performed simultaneously despite beingdescribed or implied as occurring non-simultaneously (e.g., because onestep is described after the other step). Moreover, the illustration of aprocess by its depiction in a drawing does not imply that theillustrated process is exclusive of other variations and modificationsthereto, does not imply that the illustrated process or any of its stepsare necessary to one or more of the aspects, and does not imply that theillustrated process is preferred. Also, steps are generally describedonce per aspect, but this does not mean they must occur once, or thatthey may only occur once each time a process, method, or algorithm iscarried out or executed. Some steps may be omitted in some aspects orsome occurrences, or some steps may be executed more than once in agiven aspect or occurrence.

When a single device or article is described herein, it will be readilyapparent that more than one device or article may be used in place of asingle device or article. Similarly, where more than one device orarticle is described herein, it will be readily apparent that a singledevice or article may be used in place of the more than one device orarticle.

The functionality or the features of a device may be alternativelyembodied by one or more other devices that are not explicitly describedas having such functionality or features. Thus, other aspects need notinclude the device itself.

Techniques and mechanisms described or referenced herein will sometimesbe described in singular form for clarity. However, it should beappreciated that particular aspects may include multiple iterations of atechnique or multiple instantiations of a mechanism unless notedotherwise. Process descriptions or blocks in figures should beunderstood as representing modules, segments, or portions of code whichinclude one or more executable instructions for implementing specificlogical functions or steps in the process. Alternate implementations areincluded within the scope of various aspects in which, for example,functions may be executed out of order from that shown or discussed,including substantially concurrently or in reverse order, depending onthe functionality involved, as would be understood by those havingordinary skill in the art.

Definitions

“Artificial intelligence” or “AI” as used herein means a computer systemor component that has been programmed in such a way that it mimics someaspect or aspects of cognitive functions that humans associate withhuman intelligence, such as learning, problem solving, anddecision-making. Examples of current AI technologies includeunderstanding human speech, competing successfully in strategic gamessuch as chess and Go, autonomous operation of vehicles, complexsimulations, and interpretation of complex data such as images andvideo.

“Machine learning” as used herein is an aspect of artificialintelligence in which the computer system or component can modify itsbehavior or understanding without being explicitly programmed to do so.Machine learning algorithms develop models of behavior or understandingbased on information fed to them as training sets, and can modify thosemodels based on new incoming information. An example of a machinelearning algorithm is AlphaGo, the first computer program to defeat ahuman world champion in the game of Go. AlphaGo was not explicitlyprogrammed to play Go. It was fed millions of games of Go, and developedits own model of the game and strategies of play.

“Neural network” as used herein means a computational model,architecture, or system made up of a number of simple, highlyinterconnected processing elements which process information by theirdynamic state response to external inputs, and is thus able to “learn”information by recognizing patterns or trends. Neural networks, alsosometimes known as “artificial neural networks” are based on ourunderstanding of the structure and functions of biological neuralnetworks, such as the brains of mammals. A neural network is a frameworkfor application of machine learning algorithms.

“Business establishment” or “place of business” as used herein mean thelocation of any business entity with which customers may transactbusiness. Typically, this will be a physical location where customersmay enter the location and transact business directly with employees ofthe business, but may also be a delivery-based business. Many examplesherein use a restaurant as the business establishment, but the inventionis not limited to use in restaurants, and is applicable to any businessestablishment.

“Menu offering” or “menu item” as used herein refer to any prepared foodand beverages that may be purchased from a restaurant. Typical menuofferings may include, but is not limited to: breakfast, lunch, anddinner entrees, a la carte items, appetizers, side dishes, beverages,and desserts.

“Food component” or “dish component” as used herein refer to the fooditems that are assembled to construct a menu item. This term should notbe confused with the ingredients used to prepare a menu item, as foodcomponents are a step above ingredients. For example, a menu item may bespaghetti Bolognese with garlic bread, and the components this menu itemis comprised of may be spaghetti pasta, Bolognese sauce, and garlicbread. Each of these components is created using various ingredients,for instance, the garlic bread is made using the ingredients Frenchbread, butter, garlic, salt, pepper, and onion powder. The kitchen staffprepare each food component using a recipe of ingredients, and thenassemble all necessary food components to create a menu item.

“POS device” or “point-of-sale device” as used herein refer to devicesused or connected to devices used in the process of taking andaccomplishing a customer's order. Examples may include tablets held andused by wait-staff in a restaurant, computers in a restaurant kitchenthat display orders to kitchen staff for production, and computers usedby administrative staff or ownership for the restaurant's operations, ifthey are connected to the system or network that other sales-orientedand production-oriented devices are connected to.

Conceptual Architecture

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating one embodiment of a system forremote configuration of networked devices by a server through apreconfigured router. Merchant devices used by a business or restaurant104 are automatically configured by a server 101 through a preconfiguredrouter 103. A merchant database 102 stores a profile of a merchant andwhen merchant devices 104 connect to the server 101 via thepreconfigured router 103, the merchant devices 104 are automaticallyassociated with that merchant. The server 101 now automaticallyconfigures, updates, and manages the merchant devices 104. The merchantdevices 104 may be equipped with a camera by which scanning a QR codemay automatically connect and update said merchant devices by the server101. According to one embodiment, merchant devices 104 by defaultconnect to the preconfigured router's 103 Wi-Fi signal, wherein thepreconfigured router 103 by default connects to the server 101 onceconnected to the Internet. A

QR code given to a merchant may automatically install an application ona merchant mobile device or on a merchant device 104, whereby theapplication uses the QR code to automatically configure the merchantdevices 104. The server 101 may further update the preconfigured router103 with new firmware or operating parameters at any time.

The merchant profile on the merchant database 102 comprises contactinformation and authentication credentials. The contact information mayinclude at least one of the following: an email, a phone number, a pagernumber, An IP address, a physical address, and other contact informationnot listed but otherwise obvious. Be authentication credentials arecreated whenever a merchant places an order for the preconfigured router103 and merchant devices 104. The authentication credentials can use anysecurity protocol or implementation used by computing devices and arenot limited to SSH, TLS, and as their modern day cryptographic securityprotocols. The authentication credentials are further used to generate aQR code fast serves to automatically authenticate a merchant to theserver 101 and subsequently the merchant database 102. the QR code sentto the merchant may include more than just authentication information,in some embodiments it also comprises a link to download mobileapplication and another embodiments may also include a link to atutorial instructing the merchant how to plug in the merchant devices104 on preconfigured router 103.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a system and method for remoteconfiguration of networked devices by a server through a preconfiguredrouter. The following is a system and method comprising a server 209that automatically configures and sets up a restaurant 205 or businessinformation technology (IT) infrastructure regarding point-of-saledevices (POS) 203 and other devices such as scanners, tracking displays,and any other device that any business may use.

An explanation of one embodiment of the system and method is as follows:A merchant 205 places an order(s) to a supplier 201 for one or morepoint-of-sale and other devices needed by the merchant 203. The supplier201 packages said point-of-sale and other devices 203, including apreconfigured router 202 in order to be mailed 204 to the merchant 205.The point-of-sale and other merchant devices 203 are in a blank-canvasstate with only security software and launcher software, while therouter 202 is preconfigured.

Two embodiments are anticipated: the first whereby the devices 202, 203are sent without recording of their unique identification numbers andare recorded later when the merchant 205 powers the devices 202, 203 onand they connect to the supplier's server 209, which in turn associatesthe devices 202, 203 with a merchant profile located on a merchantdatabase 210 and associated by the QR code 207. A second embodimentwhereby the devices 202, 203 packaged by the supplier 201 have their MACaddresses, serial numbers, and/or other unique identification numbersrecorded and associated with the merchant's profile before shipping.Either embodiment will have the tracking number given by the logisticscompany 204 associated with the merchant 205, wherein the merchant has aprofile on the supplier's 201 database 210 with a contact phone numberand email, or other messaging service and other profile information.

The supplier's server 209 automatically tracks the shipment 204 ofdevices 202, 203 to the merchant 205 and upon successful delivery, anotification 206 from the logistics company causes a messaging servicemodule on the server 209 to be triggered and send a message to themerchant's mobile device 208 with a tutorial and a QR code 207. Themessage could be an SMS, MMS, email, or other digital or analog means bywhich a QR code may be sent. According to another embodiment, the QRcode 207 may be printed and mailed. The QR code 207 is generated by a QRmodule, wherein a QR code 207 is generated for each merchant and whenscanned installs an app on the merchant's device 208, as well ascontaining credentials for of merchant to automatically log him or herinto the app on his or her mobile device 208 and to automaticallyconnect the merchant's mobile device 208 to the preconfigured router202. Some merchant devices and POS devices 203 may also have the abilityto scan QR codes 207 and may be used in place of the merchant's mobiledevice 208 in some embodiments. The tutorial may also includeinstructions for the merchant to manually download the app and login viaa username and password, biometrics, or the QR code 207. The tutorialmay further go on to instruct the merchant to open the crate, plug thepreconfigured router 202 into a modem with Internet access, and power onthe router 202. Router 202 will automatically make communication withsupplier's server 209. A network manager on the supplier's server 209will then create a bespoke and compartmentalized network between thepreconfigured router 202 and the supplier's server 209. In oneembodiment, the server will send firmware and new credentials to therouter 202 which may include changing the default SSID and otherwireless parameters.

The tutorial may then ask the merchant to power on one or more of thepoint-of-sale devices (or other restaurant/business devices) 203, openthe launcher, wherein the launcher will ask the merchant to identify thepurpose of the device, and then the launcher will automatically connectto the preconfigured router 202 which will facilitate communication withthe server 209. A software manager on the server will then uploadbespoke software packages to the device based on the merchant's choices.During each initial communication between a device and the server, theserver will record unique identification numbers and associate thosedevices with the merchant profile.

The order in which these steps take place are not bound to the orderdescribed herein. The description from above is simply exemplary andsome steps are to be inferred as obvious to those with ordinary skill inthe art, such as gathering merchant information when an order is placed,types of authentication i.e., TTL, HTTPS, etc., and QR code generationto name a few.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a system for configuration ofrestaurant devices by remote communication with a preconfigured networkrouter, according to one aspect. Included in the system is a setupserver 310, which may be a cloud service offering, a dedicated hostingsolution, virtual shared server, virtual private server, or anotherimplementation of a web server solution. Such a server may operate anyone of a variety of possible operating systems, such as a LINUX™ basedoperating system or a WINDOWS™ based operating system. Such a server maybe connected to the Internet or another network 320, or a variety ofnetworks including Local Area Networks (“LAN”), via at least one networkadapter that may operate over a physical cable connection or wirelesslysuch as with WIFI™. The setup server 310 may be connected to, or mayoperate, a database 315, which may be one of many varying databaseimplementations, including a SQL-based database such as MYSQL™ orMICROSOFT SQL SERVER™, a NoSQL database such as MONGODB™ or DYNAMODB™,or an ORACLE™ database, or some other form of database. It may be hostedon the same hardware or virtual instance as a server, or hostedseparately and provided by a service provider, such as some cloudservice providers including AMAZON™ and MICROSOFT™ offer, with theirservices AMAZON WEB SERVICES™ and WINDOWS AZURE™ respectively. Such adatabase may store configuration data, user data, user location orcommunications data, and data regarding VPN access. A setup server 310communicates with a user device 370 over a network 320, which may be alocal area network, or a wide area network such as the Internet, capableof connecting at least two devices for communications purposes.Protocols for such communications may include TCP/IP, UDP, and mayinclude the use of internet services and tools such as messengerprograms of various social networks or communications platformsincluding SKYPE™, DISCORD™, FACEBOOK™, and others. A setup server 310further communicates with a network router 350 over a VPN 330, which maybe a remote access VPN, or extranet-based site-to-site VPN, operatingover the Internet, and which may be either managed and operated by thesetup server 310 or by a third-party VPN provider with which the setupserver 310 is configured to operate with. The setup server 310 may alsobe connected to, and transmit data to, a text message relay server 340,such as a service provided by TWILIO™, may be a server or distributedcloud service that relays short message service (“SMS”) messages sentfrom a non-cellular device to either a cellular or non-cellularrecipient. In some alternative embodiments, the text message relayserver 340 may be a server that handles and routes non-SMS text messagessuch as FACEBOOK MESSENGER™ messages, emails, and other forms ofinternet or non-SMS communications. The network router 350 communicatingover a VPN with the setup server 310 may be a wireless router such asthose commonly built by companies including CISCO™ or others, or awireless access point that connects to a separate internet router, thatprovides access for connected wireless devices to the internet, andcommunicates with at least one, but potentially a plurality of, POSdevices 360, which may be any device connected to or involved with thesale of a good or service for a business. Examples may include tabletsheld and used by wait-staff in a restaurant, computers in a restaurantkitchen that display orders to kitchen staff for production, andcomputers used by administrative staff or ownership for the restaurant'soperations, if they are connected to the system or network that othersales-oriented and production-oriented devices are connected to. Such aconnection is established with a LAN set up by the network router, orintegrated with the network router, to enable it to set up and configurethe devices based on data received or exchanged with the setup server310. A customer device 370 may be a cellular device such as an IPHONE™or ANDROID™ phone or other smartphone, a tablet such as an IPAD™ orother tablet, a personal digital assistant or non-smartphone cellularphone, or even a laptop computer or desktop computer according to someembodiments.

According to an embodiment, a user may order and install the networkrouter 350, and receive a text message communication from one of theprior mentioned methods on their device 370 either before or afterinstalling and turning on the network router. Upon the network router's350 installation and activation, it will connect to a VPN 330 it ispreconfigured with the credentials to access over the internet 320, and,separately, set up or integrate with an existing LAN that connects tothe POS device or devices 360. The user, which may be an administrator,general manager, or other individual in the business, may interact withthe text message received from the setup server 310. Upon interactingwith the text message, such as clicking or tapping on a link or scanninga QR code, the setup server sends network and POS device setupinstructions to the network router 350, and the POS devices are set upby the network router, allowing for up-to-date setups to be delivered tousers based on the status of the setup server and database, and allowingcustomers to operate their own hardware configurations and physicalsetups without having to buy entirely new hardware, save for the networkrouter. The POS device setup may include setting up of a Virtual Machine(“VM”) for the network router 350 to interact with and configure, or thenetwork router may configure the devices and install separate softwarewithout a VM instance running on them.

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of restaurant devicesby remote communication with a preconfigured network router, with arules engine dictating setup server behavior according to anotheraspect. Included in the system is a setup server 310, which may be acloud service offering, a dedicated hosting solution, virtual sharedserver, virtual private server, or another implementation of a webserver solution. Such a server may operate any one of a variety ofpossible operating systems, such as a LINUX™ based operating system or aWINDOWS™ based operating system. Such a server may be connected to theInternet or another network 320, or a variety of networks includingLocal Area Networks (“LAN”), via at least one network adapter that mayoperate over a physical cable connection or wirelessly such as withWIFI™. The setup server 310 may be connected to, or may operate, adatabase 315, which may be one of many varying database implementations,including a SQL-based database such as MYSQL™ or MICROSOFT SQL SERVER™,a NoSQL database such as MONGODB™ or DYNAMODB™, or an ORACLE™ database,or some other form of database. It may be hosted on the same hardware orvirtual instance as a server, or hosted separately and provided by aservice provider, such as some cloud service providers including AMAZON™and MICROSOFT™ offer, with their services AMAZON WEB SERVICES™ andWINDOWS AZURE™ respectively. Such a database may store configurationdata, user data, user location or communications data, and dataregarding VPN access. A setup server 310 communicates with a user device370 over a network 320, which may be a local area network, or a widearea network such as the Internet, capable of connecting at least twodevices for communications purposes. Protocols for such communicationsmay include TCP/IP, UDP, and may include the use of internet servicesand tools such as messenger programs of various social networks orcommunications platforms including SKYPE™, DISCORD™, FACEBOOK™, andothers. A setup server 310 further communicates with a network router350 over a VPN 330, which may be a remote access VPN, or extranet-basedsite-to-site VPN, operating over the Internet, and which may be eithermanaged and operated by the setup server 310 or by a third-party VPNprovider with which the setup server 310 is configured to operate with.The setup server 310 may also be connected to, and transmit data to, atext message relay server 340, such as a service provided by TWILIO™,may be a server or distributed cloud service that relays short messageservice (“SMS”) messages sent from a non-cellular device to either acellular or non-cellular recipient. In some alternative embodiments, thetext message relay server 340 may be a server that handles and routesnon-SMS text messages such as FACEBOOK MESSENGER™ messages, emails, andother forms of internet or non-SMS communications. The network router350 communicating over a VPN with the setup server 310 may be a wirelessrouter such as those commonly built by companies including CISCO™ orothers, or a wireless access point that connects to a separate internetrouter, that provides access for connected wireless devices to theinternet, and communicates with at least one, but potentially aplurality of, POS devices 360, which may be any device connected to orinvolved with the sale of a good or service for a business. Examples mayinclude tablets held and used by wait-staff in a restaurant, computersin a restaurant kitchen that display orders to kitchen staff forproduction, and computers used by administrative staff or ownership forthe restaurant's operations, if they are connected to the system ornetwork that other sales-oriented and production-oriented devices areconnected to. Such a connection is established with a LAN set up by thenetwork router, or integrated with the network router, to enable it toset up and configure the devices based on data received or exchangedwith the setup server 310. A customer device 370 may be a cellulardevice such as an IPHONE™ or ANDROID™ phone or other smartphone, atablet such as an IPAD™ or other tablet, a personal digital assistant ornon-smartphone cellular phone, or even a laptop computer or desktopcomputer according to some embodiments. A rules engine 410 may be asoftware package operating as part of the setup server 310, or it may beoperating on a separate device connected to the setup server 310 over alocal or wide area network including the Internet, communicating withand serving as an intermediary between the setup server 310 and anynetworks 320, 330 it may communicate through, as well as between thesetup server 310 and text message relay server 340.

According to an embodiment, a user may order and install the networkrouter 350, and receive a text message communication from one of theprior mentioned methods on their device 370 either before or afterinstalling and turning on the network router. Upon the network router's350 installation and activation, it will connect to a VPN 330 it ispreconfigured with the credentials to access over the internet 320, and,separately, set up or integrate with an existing LAN that connects tothe POS device or devices 360. The user, which may be an administrator,general manager, or other individual in the business, may interact withthe text message received from the setup server 310. Upon interactingwith the text message, such as clicking or tapping on a link or scanninga QR code, the setup server sends network and POS device setupinstructions to the network router 350, and the POS devices are set upby the network router, allowing for up-to-date setups to be delivered tousers based on the status of the setup server and database, and allowingcustomers to operate their own hardware configurations and physicalsetups without having to buy entirely new hardware, save for the networkrouter. The POS device setup may include setting up of a Virtual Machine(“VM”) for the network router 350 to interact with and configure, or thenetwork router may configure the devices and install separate softwarewithout a VM instance running on them.

According to another aspect, a rules engine 410 may exist in the systemas part of, or separate but connected to, the setup server 310, and mayexist as a distinct input-output filtering device or service. In thisway, the rules engine may specify what devices may connect with thesetup server 310 or VPN 330, what texts may go outbound from the setupserver 310, what text message interactions may be registered as valid orwhat response their interactions may result in, and more, adding a layerof control and abstraction from the setup server 310 itself.

Detailed Description of Exemplary Aspects

FIG. 5 is a method diagram illustrating a network router being unpackedand set up, and communicating with a setup server. A network router inthis context may be a complete wireless network router, or a wirelessendpoint connected to a network router, or an all-in-one modem andwireless router. First, a business administrator, manager, owner, orother employee ma set up their POS devices with virtual machine software510, the virtual machine software comprising at least a network adapterand ability to install and operate software when specially instructed bythe network router, for purposes such as kitchen management, inventorymanagement, order management, and other tasks that software may bedesigned for, to aid a business in its operation. Once the networkrouter is unpacked, plugged in and turned on 520, the network routercreates or joins a local network, which the local POS devices will beconfigured to join 530 through the use of the VM software. The networkrouter may join a network already in existence if it is a wirelessaccess point for another router, or may create and manage the localnetwork itself, with the POS devices connecting to it. The networkrouter may then connect to the Internet, and set up a VPN connection toconnect with a remote setup server 540. Such connections may take placeover a variety of internet connection protocols such as TCP/IP, UDP,OpenVPN, or others, or a combination of protocols and connectivitytechnologies. A text message may then be sent to the user from the setupserver through a text message relay server, the text message includingan interactable element such as a QR code or a hyperlink, interactionswith the message initiating the setup server's transfer of instructionsto the network router 550. Such a sequence of operations may be, forinstance, a link being transmitted to a user's phone, the user settingup the network router, and then tapping the link once the router hasbeen set up, the network router then setting up the locally connectedPOS devices. The instructions to be transmitted to the network routerfrom the setup server are queried from the setup server's connecteddatabase 560, the term “database” being used here to refer to anylong-term data storage solution, which may be an actual databaseinstance, multiple database instances, a cloud data storage solution, orsome other data storage and reading solution. The setup server may thentransmit the network router setup instructions for local POS 570,instructions which may include which software packages to install oneach device, how to configure such packages, what the relationshipbetween the devices should be with the different software packages,their inventory management software, and more 580.

FIG. 6 is a method diagram illustrating a setup server communicatingwith a network router, the network router then communicating with andsetting up and configuring connected POS devices. A setup server maytransmit setup instructions for local POS devices, to a network router610, after which time the network router communicates the instructionswith the local network devices running compatible virtual machinesoftware 620. The setup instructions received by the network router areexecuted and the results of the setup instructions are sent to the localPOS devices hosting the VMs, or, alternatively, the instructionsthemselves are sent to the virtual machines to be executed 630 ratherthan being executed on the network router first. The virtual machinesmay then set up and configure themselves and install any requisite orspecified software, and integrate with existing software if desired 640,allowing the business to now utilize fully configured VMs running onphysical machines locally 650, without requiring the business to buy allnew hardware devices to install, instead only requiring the installationand setup of a single network router or wireless access point.

FIG. 7 is a method diagram illustrating the function of a setup server,according to an aspect. A possible first step may be for the setupserver to read device configuration settings from a database 710, suchsettings being either relevant to a specific upcoming device or networksetup, or perhaps there are a very limited number of configurations andthey are all loaded into memory to be dispensed to network routerson-demand. The setup server may then receive communications from anetwork router when the network router is initially turned on andconnected to the Internet 720, through a VPN connection, wherein thecommunications from a network router includes its IP address on thevirtual private network 730. This essentially constitutes a heartbeatsignal, whereby the network router connects to the VPN that the setupserver is connected to, and sends a signal indicating where in thedigital space the router is able to be reached for furthercommunications. The setup server may then compose a text messagecontaining at least one link or QR code or other interactable data for auser 740, wherein activation of the link or other data initiates thesetup and configuration data to be delivered from the setup server tothe network router over the VPN 750, and then send the text message to atext message relay server to be delivered to a mobile device 760.

In another embodiment, the text message generation and sending may occurearlier in the process, before the network router is installed or sendsits heartbeat signal to the setup server.

In yet another embodiment, it may be the case that the user does notreceive the text message on a mobile device. For instance, it may besent over a messaging client such as FACEBOOK MESSENGER™ or some otherclient, and may be receivable on any number of devices includingsmartphones, tablets, laptop or desktop computers, and potentiallyothers.

In yet another embodiment, the text message may include a QR code thatmust be scanned by the network router, rather than a link that must betapped or clicked to activate the network router once it is connected tothe setup server.

FIG. 8 is a method diagram illustrating the function of a text messagerelay server, as used to relay text messages from a server desiring tosend them and a recipient who may or may not be a mobile device capableof ordinarily receiving short message service (“SMS”) messages,according to a preferred embodiment. A text message relay server maycomprise a server or cloud service such as those offered by TWILIO™ orAMAZON WEB SERVICES™ or some other server implementation or serviceprovider, and may be capable of accepting text data in a variety offorms including SMS messages, JSON text strings received over aninternet connection, or other forms of data, and may relay them as SMSmessages, emails, text messages over messaging platforms, or other formsof text messages. A text message relay server may first receive arequest from a server or other device or service, to send a text messageto a recipient 810. Such a request may include the recipient'sinformation, the identity of the sender, content of the message torelay, and the method to relay it to the user, wherein the messagerecipient is defined either by a phone number or by an internal mappingof recipient identities to an Internet Protocol address 820. Analternative embodiment may have the recipient instead specified by auser identity on a messaging service such as FACEBOOK™ or another socialmedia or messaging platform, such as SKYPE™ DISCORD™. In eitherembodiment, the request to send a text message is received from a setupserver 830 or rules engine depending on whether or not a separate rulesengine is present in the system, and the text message relay server mayaccomplish the sending of the text message to the specified recipient840. The content of the text message may include a link, a QR code, aninteractive button, or some other element which a user may interact within order to activate their network router when it is plugged in andconnected to the internet and the VPN with the setup server.

FIG. 9 is a method diagram illustrating a network router setting up aVirtual Private Network and connecting to a setup server, and connectingto local POS devices, according to an embodiment. The router first, uponbeing activated and connected to the Internet, joins a virtual privatenetwork when initialized and connected to a location's local network andthe Internet 910, or may set up such a network if it does not alreadyexist. The setup server, for creation of a new VPN, would need to beinvited to or otherwise pinged by the network router, to join the VPN,in that implementation, but in either case the setup server must alsobecome connected to the virtual private network 920. The network routermay then communicate with a POS device over the local network 930 itpreviously set up, and upon receiving setup or configurationinstructions from a setup server, the network router may initiatetransfer of configuration and setup data between the setup server and aPOS device or plurality of POS devices, when instructed by a setupserver 940.

FIG. 10 is a method diagram illustrating a POS device operating as oneof several possible device types in a restaurant, and receiving data tobe set up and configured as per instruction from a network router,according to a preferred embodiment. Depending on the implementation andphysical location and orientations of devices, and the needs of thebusiness, a POS device may operate as a kitchen device (such as onecapable of displaying orders or other kitchen-critical information tokitchen staff), front-desk (such as for handling reservations, seatingarrangements, and payments), or backend computer (such as an inventorymanagement computer or other device in an inventory area, a manager'scomputer, or a POS device located elsewhere in the restaurant away fromthe front-desk reception), within a restaurant 1010. Such devices may beidentical devices (such as IPAD™ or other tablet computers), or somecombination of physical device orientations and configurations that maydiffer from each other, or be completely non-standardized and all havedifferent physical characteristics and setups 1020. The device ordevices will then, as far as they are involved in the process accordingto a preferred embodiment, receive setup and configuration data from thenetwork router, when the network router is sent such data over a virtualprivate network from a setup server 1030.

For example, a virtual machine may be installed and operate on a kitchencomputer in a restaurant. The virtual machine may be a specific offeringby a company, designed to be compatible with a network router thatattempts to set up the computer as illustrated herein. The networkrouter may detect the virtual machine on the local network wheninstalled, due to, for instance, a specific ping message sent on thelocal network, from the virtual machine to the new router it isconnected to, upon identifying the router as the network router it iscompatible with. The two devices then know each other on the network andare aware that each other is a compatible device. The network router maythen communicate with the POS device in the kitchen, with the virtualmachine loaded onto the physical machine to be specific, to instruct itin what software to install, from where to install it, and how toconfigure it, in a manner specific to the network router and VMcombination.

FIG. 11 is a method diagram illustrating steps taken by a rules engineto filter and control access to and responses from a setup server,according to one embodiment. First, a rules engine may communicate witha setup server, to determine the stored rules for router communicationsand device setup 1110, which may include rules and algorithms fordetermining behaviors for communicating between the setup server and anetwork router, how to connect to a VPN, what VPN connections arepermitted, as well as provide firewall functionality to externalconnections both incoming and outgoing, depending on the implementation.A rules engine may intercept communications from a network router 1120that are incoming to the setup server, as well as mediate communicationsbetween a network router and a setup server 1130 for outgoingcommunications from the setup server to the network router. The rulesengine may then apply filters or rules-based changes to incoming andoutgoing data to and from the setup server, such as but not limited towhitelists, blacklists, changes to configuration data or text messages,rerouting certain incoming server requests elsewhere, or other changesto incoming and outgoing data 1140.

FIG. 12 is a message flow diagram illustrating messages exchanged in thefunction of a system for configuration of restaurant devices by remotecommunication with a preconfigured network router, according to anembodiment. Included in the system is a setup server 310, which may be acloud service offering, a dedicated hosting solution, virtual sharedserver, virtual private server, or another implementation of a webserver solution. Such a server may operate any one of a variety ofpossible operating systems, such as a LINUX™ based operating system or aWINDOWS™ based operating system. Such a server may be connected to theInternet or another network 320, or a variety of networks includingLocal Area Networks (“LAN”), via at least one network adapter that mayoperate over a physical cable connection or wirelessly such as withWIFI™. The setup server 310 may be connected to, or may operate, adatabase 315, which may be one of many varying database implementations,including a SQL-based database such as MYSQL™ or MICROSOFT SQL SERVER™,a NoSQL database such as MONGODB™ or DYNAMODB™, or an ORACLE™ database,or some other form of database. It may be hosted on the same hardware orvirtual instance as a server, or hosted separately and provided by aservice provider, such as some cloud service providers including AMAZON™and MICROSOFT™ offer, with their services AMAZON WEB SERVICES™ andWINDOWS AZURE™ respectively. Such a database may store configurationdata, user data, user location or communications data, and dataregarding VPN access. A setup server 310 communicates with a user device370 over a network 320, which may be a local area network, or a widearea network such as the Internet, capable of connecting at least twodevices for communications purposes. Protocols for such communicationsmay include TCP/IP, UDP, and may include the use of internet servicesand tools such as messenger programs of various social networks orcommunications platforms including SKYPE™, DISCORD™, FACEBOOK™, andothers. A setup server 310 further communicates with a network router350 over a VPN 330, which may be a remote access VPN, or extranet-basedsite-to-site VPN, operating over the Internet, and which may be eithermanaged and operated by the setup server 310 or by a third-party VPNprovider with which the setup server 310 is configured to operate with.The setup server 310 may also be connected to, and transmit data to, atext message relay server 340, such as a service provided by TWILIO™,may be a server or distributed cloud service that relays short messageservice (“SMS”) messages sent from a non-cellular device to either acellular or non-cellular recipient. In some alternative embodiments, thetext message relay server 340 may be a server that handles and routesnon-SMS text messages such as FACEBOOK MESSENGER™ messages, emails, andother forms of internet or non-SMS communications. The network router350 communicating over a VPN with the setup server 310 may be a wirelessrouter such as those commonly built by companies including CISCO™ orothers, or a wireless access point that connects to a separate internetrouter, that provides access for connected wireless devices to theinternet, and communicates with at least one, but potentially aplurality of, POS devices 360, which may be any device connected to orinvolved with the sale of a good or service for a business. Examples mayinclude tablets held and used by wait-staff in a restaurant, computersin a restaurant kitchen that display orders to kitchen staff forproduction, and computers used by administrative staff or ownership forthe restaurant's operations, if they are connected to the system ornetwork that other sales-oriented and production-oriented devices areconnected to. Such a connection is established with a LAN set up by thenetwork router, or integrated with the network router, to enable it toset up and configure the devices based on data received or exchangedwith the setup server 310. A customer device 370 may be a cellulardevice such as an IPHONE™ or ANDROID™ phone or other smartphone, atablet such as an IPAD™ or other tablet, a personal digital assistant ornon-smartphone cellular phone, or even a laptop computer or desktopcomputer according to some embodiments.

According to an embodiment, a user may order and install the networkrouter 350, and receive a text message communication from one of theprior mentioned methods on their device 370 either before or afterinstalling and turning on the network router. Upon the network router's350 installation and activation, it will connect to a VPN 330 it ispreconfigured with the credentials to access over the internet 320, and,separately, set up or integrate with an existing LAN that connects tothe POS device or devices 360. The user, which may be an administrator,general manager, or other individual in the business, may interact withthe text message received from the setup server 310. Upon interactingwith the text message, such as clicking or tapping on a link or scanninga QR code, the setup server sends network and POS device setupinstructions to the network router 350, and the POS devices are set upby the network router, allowing for up-to-date setups to be delivered tousers based on the status of the setup server and database, and allowingcustomers to operate their own hardware configurations and physicalsetups without having to buy entirely new hardware, save for the networkrouter. The POS device setup may include setting up of a Virtual Machine(“VM”) for the network router 350 to interact with and configure, or thenetwork router may configure the devices and install separate softwarewithout a VM instance running on them. A network router 350 in thiscontext may be a complete wireless network router, or a wirelessendpoint connected to a network router, or an all-in-one modem andwireless router. First, a business administrator, manager, owner, orother employee ma set up their POS devices with virtual machinesoftware, the virtual machine software comprising at least a networkadapter and ability to install and operate software when speciallyinstructed by the network router, for purposes such as kitchenmanagement, inventory management, order management, and other tasks thatsoftware may be designed for, to aid a business in its operation. Oncethe network router is unpacked, plugged in and turned on, the networkrouter creates or joins a local network 1210, which the local POSdevices will be configured to join through the use of the VM software.The network router may join a network already in existence if it is awireless access point for another router, or may create and manage thelocal network itself, with the POS devices connecting to it. The networkrouter may then connect to the Internet, and set up a VPN connection toconnect with a remote setup server 1215. Such connections may take placeover a variety of internet connection protocols such as TCP/IP, UDP,OpenVPN, or others, or a combination of protocols and connectivitytechnologies. A text message may then be sent to the user from the setupserver through a text message relay server 1220, the text messageincluding an interactable element such as a QR code or a hyperlink,interactions with the message initiating the setup server's transfer ofinstructions to the network router 1225. Such a sequence of operationsmay be, for instance, a link being transmitted to a user's phone, theuser setting up the network router, and then tapping the link once therouter has been set up, the network router then setting up the locallyconnected POS devices. The instructions to be transmitted to the networkrouter from the setup server are queried from the setup server'sconnected database, the term “database” being used here to refer to anylong-term data storage solution, which may be an actual databaseinstance, multiple database instances, a cloud data storage solution, orsome other data storage and reading solution. The setup server may thentransmit the network router setup instructions for local POS 1230,instructions which may include which software packages to install oneach device, how to configure such packages, what the relationshipbetween the devices should be with the different software packages,their inventory management software, and more. The setup instructionsreceived by the network router are executed and the results of the setupinstructions are sent to the local POS devices hosting the VMs 1235, or,alternatively, the instructions themselves are sent to the virtualmachines to be executed rather than being executed on the network routerfirst. The virtual machines may then set up and configure themselves andinstall any requisite or specified software, and integrate with existingsoftware if desired, allowing the business to now utilize fullyconfigured VMs running on physical machines locally, without requiringthe business to buy all new hardware devices to install, instead onlyrequiring the installation and setup of a single network router orwireless access point.

FIG. 13 is a message flow diagram illustrating messages exchanged in thefunction of a system for configuration of restaurant devices by remotecommunication with a preconfigured network router, using QR codes toscan data rather than an activation link sent to a user, according to anembodiment. Included in the system is a setup server 310, which may be acloud service offering, a dedicated hosting solution, virtual sharedserver, virtual private server, or another implementation of a webserver solution. Such a server may operate any one of a variety ofpossible operating systems, such as a LINUX™ based operating system or aWINDOWS™ based operating system. Such a server may be connected to theInternet or another network 320, or a variety of networks includingLocal Area Networks (“LAN”), via at least one network adapter that mayoperate over a physical cable connection or wirelessly such as withWIFI™. The setup server 310 may be connected to, or may operate, adatabase 315, which may be one of many varying database implementations,including a SQL-based database such as MYSQL™ or MICROSOFT SQL SERVER™,a NoSQL database such as MONGODB™ or DYNAMODB™, or an ORACLE™ database,or some other form of database. It may be hosted on the same hardware orvirtual instance as a server, or hosted separately and provided by aservice provider, such as some cloud service providers including AMAZON™and MICROSOFT™ offer, with their services AMAZON WEB SERVICES™ andWINDOWS AZURE™ respectively. Such a database may store configurationdata, user data, user location or communications data, and dataregarding VPN access. A setup server 310 communicates with a user device370 over a network 320, which may be a local area network, or a widearea network such as the Internet, capable of connecting at least twodevices for communications purposes. Protocols for such communicationsmay include TCP/IP, UDP, and may include the use of internet servicesand tools such as messenger programs of various social networks orcommunications platforms including SKYPE™, DISCORD™, FACEBOOK™, andothers. A setup server 310 further communicates with a network router350 over a VPN 330, which may be a remote access VPN, or extranet-basedsite-to-site VPN, operating over the Internet, and which may be eithermanaged and operated by the setup server 310 or by a third-party VPNprovider with which the setup server 310 is configured to operate with.The setup server 310 may also be connected to, and transmit data to, atext message relay server 340, such as a service provided by TWILIO™,may be a server or distributed cloud service that relays short messageservice (“SMS”) messages sent from a non-cellular device to either acellular or non-cellular recipient. In some alternative embodiments, thetext message relay server 340 may be a server that handles and routesnon-SMS text messages such as FACEBOOK MESSENGER™ messages, emails, andother forms of internet or non-SMS communications. The network router350 communicating over a VPN with the setup server 310 may be a wirelessrouter such as those commonly built by companies including CISCO™ orothers, or a wireless access point that connects to a separate internetrouter, that provides access for connected wireless devices to theinternet, and communicates with at least one, but potentially aplurality of, POS devices 360, which may be any device connected to orinvolved with the sale of a good or service for a business. Examples mayinclude tablets held and used by wait-staff in a restaurant, computersin a restaurant kitchen that display orders to kitchen staff forproduction, and computers used by administrative staff or ownership forthe restaurant's operations, if they are connected to the system ornetwork that other sales-oriented and production-oriented devices areconnected to. Such a connection is established with a LAN set up by thenetwork router, or integrated with the network router, to enable it toset up and configure the devices based on data received or exchangedwith the setup server 310. A customer device 370 may be a cellulardevice such as an IPHONE™ or ANDROID™ phone or other smartphone, atablet such as an IPAD™ or other tablet, a personal digital assistant ornon-smartphone cellular phone, or even a laptop computer or desktopcomputer according to some embodiments.

According to an embodiment, a user may order and install the networkrouter 350, and receive a text message communication from one of theprior mentioned methods on their device 370 either before or afterinstalling and turning on the network router. Upon the network router's350 installation and activation, it will connect to a VPN 330 it ispreconfigured with the credentials to access over the internet 320, and,separately, set up or integrate with an existing LAN that connects tothe POS device or devices 360. The user, which may be an administrator,general manager, or other individual in the business, may interact withthe text message received from the setup server 310. Upon interactingwith the text message, such as clicking or tapping on a link or scanninga QR code, the setup server sends network and POS device setupinstructions to the network router 350, and the POS devices are set upby the network router, allowing for up-to-date setups to be delivered tousers based on the status of the setup server and database, and allowingcustomers to operate their own hardware configurations and physicalsetups without having to buy entirely new hardware, save for the networkrouter. The POS device setup may include setting up of a Virtual Machine(“VM”) for the network router 350 to interact with and configure, or thenetwork router may configure the devices and install separate softwarewithout a VM instance running on them. A network router 350 in thiscontext may be a complete wireless network router, or a wirelessendpoint connected to a network router, or an all-in-one modem andwireless router. First, a business administrator, manager, owner, orother employee ma set up their POS devices with virtual machinesoftware, the virtual machine software comprising at least a networkadapter and ability to install and operate software when speciallyinstructed by the network router, for purposes such as kitchenmanagement, inventory management, order management, and other tasks thatsoftware may be designed for, to aid a business in its operation. Oncethe network router is unpacked, plugged in and turned on, the networkrouter creates or joins a local network 1310, which the local POSdevices will be configured to join through the use of the VM software.The network router may join a network already in existence if it is awireless access point for another router, or may create and manage thelocal network itself, with the POS devices connecting to it. The networkrouter may then connect to the Internet, and set up a VPN connection toconnect with a remote setup server 1315. Such connections may take placeover a variety of internet connection protocols such as TCP/IP, UDP,OpenVPN, or others, or a combination of protocols and connectivitytechnologies. A text message may then be sent to the user from the setupserver through a text message relay server, the text message in this usecase comprising at least either a QR code or a link to obtain a QR code,or some other method of transmitting QR code data to the user 1320, atwhich point the user may scan the QR code into the network router 1325.After scanning the QR code in, the network router 350 communicates withthe setup server 310 over their VPN, to confirm the QR code scan andrequest setup instructions 1330, the request being potentiallydynamically based on the data contained in the QR code 1325. Such asequence of operations may be, for instance, a QR code or QR code linkbeing transmitted to a user's phone, the user setting up the networkrouter, and then scanning the QR code into the router once the routerhas been set up, the network router then setting up the locallyconnected POS devices. The instructions to be transmitted to the networkrouter from the setup server are queried from the setup server'sconnected database, the term “database” being used here to refer to anylong-term data storage solution, which may be an actual databaseinstance, multiple database instances, a cloud data storage solution, orsome other data storage and reading solution. The setup server may thentransmit the network router setup instructions for local POS 1335,instructions which may include which software packages to install oneach device, how to configure such packages, what the relationshipbetween the devices should be with the different software packages,their inventory management software, and more. The setup instructionsreceived by the network router are executed and the results of the setupinstructions are sent to the local POS devices hosting the VMs 1340, or,alternatively, the instructions themselves are sent to the virtualmachines to be executed rather than being executed on the network routerfirst. The virtual machines may then set up and configure themselves andinstall any requisite or specified software, and integrate with existingsoftware if desired, allowing the business to now utilize fullyconfigured VMs running on physical machines locally, without requiringthe business to buy all new hardware devices to install, instead onlyrequiring the installation and setup of a single network router orwireless access point.

FIG. 14 is a message flow diagram illustrating messages exchanged in thefunction of a system for configuration of restaurant devices by remotecommunication with a preconfigured network router, using a rules engine,according to an embodiment. Included in the system is a setup server310, which may be a cloud service offering, a dedicated hostingsolution, virtual shared server, virtual private server, or anotherimplementation of a web server solution. Such a server may operate anyone of a variety of possible operating systems, such as a LINUX™ basedoperating system or a WINDOWS™ based operating system. Such a server maybe connected to the Internet or another network 320, or a variety ofnetworks including Local Area Networks (“LAN”), via at least one networkadapter that may operate over a physical cable connection or wirelesslysuch as with WIFI™. The setup server 310 may be connected to, or mayoperate, a database 315, which may be one of many varying databaseimplementations, including a SQL-based database such as MYSQL™ orMICROSOFT SQL SERVER™, a NoSQL database such as MONGODB™ or DYNAMODB™,or an ORACLE™ database, or some other form of database. It may be hostedon the same hardware or virtual instance as a server, or hostedseparately and provided by a service provider, such as some cloudservice providers including AMAZON™ and MICROSOFT™ offer, with theirservices AMAZON WEB SERVICES™ and WINDOWS AZURE™ respectively. Such adatabase may store configuration data, user data, user location orcommunications data, and data regarding VPN access. A setup server 310communicates with a user device 370 over a network 320, which may be alocal area network, or a wide area network such as the Internet, capableof connecting at least two devices for communications purposes.Protocols for such communications may include TCP/IP, UDP, and mayinclude the use of internet services and tools such as messengerprograms of various social networks or communications platformsincluding SKYPE™, DISCORD™, FACEBOOK™, and others. A setup server 310further communicates with a network router 350 over a VPN 330, which maybe a remote access VPN, or extranet-based site-to-site VPN, operatingover the Internet, and which may be either managed and operated by thesetup server 310 or by a third-party VPN provider with which the setupserver 310 is configured to operate with. The setup server 310 may alsobe connected to, and transmit data to, a text message relay server 340,such as a service provided by TWILIO™, may be a server or distributedcloud service that relays short message service (“SMS”) messages sentfrom a non-cellular device to either a cellular or non-cellularrecipient. In some alternative embodiments, the text message relayserver 340 may be a server that handles and routes non-SMS text messagessuch as FACEBOOK MESSENGER™ messages, emails, and other forms ofinternet or non-SMS communications. The network router 350 communicatingover a VPN with the setup server 310 may be a wireless router such asthose commonly built by companies including CISCO™ or others, or awireless access point that connects to a separate internet router, thatprovides access for connected wireless devices to the internet, andcommunicates with at least one, but potentially a plurality of, POSdevices 360, which may be any device connected to or involved with thesale of a good or service for a business. Examples may include tabletsheld and used by wait-staff in a restaurant, computers in a restaurantkitchen that display orders to kitchen staff for production, andcomputers used by administrative staff or ownership for the restaurant'soperations, if they are connected to the system or network that othersales-oriented and production-oriented devices are connected to. Such aconnection is established with a LAN set up by the network router, orintegrated with the network router, to enable it to set up and configurethe devices based on data received or exchanged with the setup server310. A customer device 370 may be a cellular device such as an IPHONE™or ANDROID™ phone or other smartphone, a tablet such as an IPAD™ orother tablet, a personal digital assistant or non-smartphone cellularphone, or even a laptop computer or desktop computer according to someembodiments. A rules engine 410 may be a software package operating aspart of the setup server 310, or it may be operating on a separatedevice connected to the setup server 310 over a local or wide areanetwork including the Internet, communicating with and serving as anintermediary between the setup server 310 and any networks 320, 330 itmay communicate through, as well as between the setup server 310 andtext message relay server 340.

According to an embodiment, a user may order and install the networkrouter 350, and receive a text message communication from one of theprior mentioned methods on their device 370 either before or afterinstalling and turning on the network router. Upon the network router's350 installation and activation, it will connect to a VPN 330 it ispreconfigured with the credentials to access over the internet 320, and,separately, set up or integrate with an existing LAN that connects tothe POS device or devices 360. The user, which may be an administrator,general manager, or other individual in the business, may interact withthe text message received from the setup server 310. Upon interactingwith the text message, such as clicking or tapping on a link or scanninga QR code, the setup server sends network and POS device setupinstructions to the network router 350, and the POS devices are set upby the network router, allowing for up-to-date setups to be delivered tousers based on the status of the setup server and database, and allowingcustomers to operate their own hardware configurations and physicalsetups without having to buy entirely new hardware, save for the networkrouter. The POS device setup may include setting up of a Virtual Machine(“VM”) for the network router 350 to interact with and configure, or thenetwork router may configure the devices and install separate softwarewithout a VM instance running on them.

According to another aspect, a rules engine 410 may exist in the systemas part of, or separate but connected to, the setup server 310, and mayexist as a distinct input-output filtering device or service. In thisway, the rules engine may specify what devices may connect with thesetup server 310 or VPN 330, what texts may go outbound from the setupserver 310, what text message interactions may be registered as valid orwhat response their interactions may result in, and more, adding a layerof control and abstraction from the setup server 310 itself.

First, a business administrator, manager, owner, or other employee maset up their POS devices with virtual machine software, the virtualmachine software comprising at least a network adapter and ability toinstall and operate software when specially instructed by the networkrouter, for purposes such as kitchen management, inventory management,order management, and other tasks that software may be designed for, toaid a business in its operation. Once the network router is unpacked,plugged in and turned on, the network router creates or joins a localnetwork 1410, which the local POS devices will be configured to jointhrough the use of the VM software. The network router may join anetwork already in existence if it is a wireless access point foranother router, or may create and manage the local network itself, withthe POS devices connecting to it. The network router may then connect tothe Internet, and set up a VPN connection to connect with a remote setupserver, mediated by a rules engine that determines whether or not theconnection may go through 1415. If the connection is denied, the networkrouter may retry the connection, try alternative configurations for theconnection if it is programmed with such, or may simply fail to connect,resulting in the user having to contact the setup server provider toinquire as to next steps. Such connections may take place over a varietyof internet connection protocols such as TCP/IP, UDP, OpenVPN, orothers, or a combination of protocols and connectivity technologies. Atext message may then be sent to the user from the setup server througha text message relay server 1420, mediated and potentially modified bythe rules engine 410, the text message including an interactable elementsuch as a QR code or a hyperlink, interactions with the messageinitiating the setup server's transfer of instructions to the networkrouter 1425, if the rules engine allows the transmission. Such asequence of operations may be, for instance, a link being transmitted toa user's phone, the user setting up the network router, and then tappingthe link once the router has been set up, the network router thensetting up the locally connected POS devices. The instructions to betransmitted to the network router from the setup server are queried fromthe setup server's connected database, the term “database” being usedhere to refer to any long-term data storage solution, which may be anactual database instance, multiple database instances, a cloud datastorage solution, or some other data storage and reading solution. Thesetup server may then transmit the network router setup instructions forlocal POS 1430, the transmission being moderated or altered or formattedby the rules engine 410, instructions which may include which softwarepackages to install on each device, how to configure such packages, whatthe relationship between the devices should be with the differentsoftware packages, their inventory management software, and more. Thesetup instructions received by the network router are executed and theresults of the setup instructions are sent to the local POS deviceshosting the VMs 1435, or, alternatively, the instructions themselves aresent to the virtual machines to be executed rather than being executedon the network router first. The virtual machines may then set up andconfigure themselves and install any requisite or specified software,and integrate with existing software if desired, allowing the businessto now utilize fully configured VMs running on physical machineslocally, without requiring the business to buy all new hardware devicesto install, instead only requiring the installation and setup of asingle network router or wireless access point.

Examples of rule engine functionality may include preventing certainmessages from reaching the setup server, altering their formatting orcontent to ensure malicious or malformed messages do not get received bythe setup server, sanitizing data, and more, as well as possibly actingas a separate (or additional) firewall for the setup server.

Hardware Architecture

Generally, the techniques disclosed herein may be implemented onhardware or a combination of software and hardware. For example, theymay be implemented in an operating system kernel, in a separate userprocess, in a library package bound into network applications, on aspecially constructed machine, on an application-specific integratedcircuit (ASIC), or on a network interface card.

Software/hardware hybrid implementations of at least some of the aspectsdisclosed herein may be implemented on a programmable network-residentmachine (which should be understood to include intermittently connectednetwork-aware machines) selectively activated or reconfigured by acomputer program stored in memory. Such network devices may havemultiple network interfaces that may be configured or designed toutilize different types of network communication protocols. A generalarchitecture for some of these machines may be described herein in orderto illustrate one or more exemplary means by which a given unit offunctionality may be implemented. According to specific aspects, atleast some of the features or functionalities of the various aspectsdisclosed herein may be implemented on one or more general-purposecomputers associated with one or more networks, such as for example anend-user computer system, a client computer, a network server or otherserver system, a mobile computing device (e.g., tablet computing device,mobile phone, smartphone, laptop, or other appropriate computingdevice), a consumer electronic device, a music player, or any othersuitable electronic device, router, switch, or other suitable device, orany combination thereof. In at least some aspects, at least some of thefeatures or functionalities of the various aspects disclosed herein maybe implemented in one or more virtualized computing environments (e.g.,network computing clouds, virtual machines hosted on one or morephysical computing machines, or other appropriate virtual environments).

Referring now to FIG. 15, there is shown a block diagram depicting anexemplary computing device 10 suitable for implementing at least aportion of the features or functionalities disclosed herein. Computingdevice 10 may be, for example, any one of the computing machines listedin the previous paragraph, or indeed any other electronic device capableof executing software- or hardware-based instructions according to oneor more programs stored in memory. Computing device 10 may be configuredto communicate with a plurality of other computing devices, such asclients or servers, over communications networks such as a wide areanetwork a metropolitan area network, a local area network, a wirelessnetwork, the Internet, or any other network, using known protocols forsuch communication, whether wireless or wired.

In one aspect, computing device 10 includes one or more centralprocessing units (CPU) 12, one or more interfaces 15, and one or morebusses 14 (such as a peripheral component interconnect (PCI) bus). Whenacting under the control of appropriate software or firmware, CPU 12 maybe responsible for implementing specific functions associated with thefunctions of a specifically configured computing device or machine. Forexample, in at least one aspect, a computing device 10 may be configuredor designed to function as a server system utilizing CPU 12, localmemory 11 and/or remote memory 16, and interface(s) 15. In at least oneaspect, CPU 12 may be caused to perform one or more of the differenttypes of functions and/or operations under the control of softwaremodules or components, which for example, may include an operatingsystem and any appropriate applications software, drivers, and the like.

CPU 12 may include one or more processors 13 such as, for example, aprocessor from one of the Intel, ARM, Qualcomm, and AMD families ofmicroprocessors. In some aspects, processors 13 may include speciallydesigned hardware such as application-specific integrated circuits(ASICs), electrically erasable programmable read-only memories(EEPROMs), field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), and so forth, forcontrolling operations of computing device 10. In a particular aspect, alocal memory 11 (such as non-volatile random access memory (RAM) and/orread-only memory (ROM), including for example one or more levels ofcached memory) may also form part of CPU 12. However, there are manydifferent ways in which memory may be coupled to system 10. Memory 11may be used for a variety of purposes such as, for example, cachingand/or storing data, programming instructions, and the like. It shouldbe further appreciated that CPU 12 may be one of a variety ofsystem-on-a-chip (SOC) type hardware that may include additionalhardware such as memory or graphics processing chips, such as a QUALCOMMSNAPDRAGON™ or SAMSUNG EXYNOS™ CPU as are becoming increasingly commonin the art, such as for use in mobile devices or integrated devices.

As used herein, the term “processor” is not limited merely to thoseintegrated circuits referred to in the art as a processor, a mobileprocessor, or a microprocessor, but broadly refers to a microcontroller,a microcomputer, a programmable logic controller, anapplication-specific integrated circuit, and any other programmablecircuit.

In one aspect, interfaces 15 are provided as network interface cards(NICs). Generally, NICs control the sending and receiving of datapackets over a computer network; other types of interfaces 15 may forexample support other peripherals used with computing device 10. Amongthe interfaces that may be provided are Ethernet interfaces, frame relayinterfaces, cable interfaces, DSL interfaces, token ring interfaces,graphics interfaces, and the like. In addition, various types ofinterfaces may be provided such as, for example, universal serial bus(USB), Serial, Ethernet, FIREWIRE™, THUNDERBOLT™, PCI, parallel, radiofrequency (RF), BLUETOOTH™, near-field communications (e.g., usingnear-field magnetics), 802.11 (Wi-Fi), frame relay, TCP/IP, ISDN, fastEthernet interfaces, Gigabit Ethernet interfaces, Serial ATA (SATA) orexternal SATA (ESATA) interfaces, high-definition multimedia interface(HDMI), digital visual interface (DVI), analog or digital audiointerfaces, asynchronous transfer mode (ATM) interfaces, high-speedserial interface (HSSI) interfaces, Point of Sale (POS) interfaces,fiber data distributed interfaces (FDDIs), and the like. Generally, suchinterfaces 15 may include physical ports appropriate for communicationwith appropriate media. In some cases, they may also include anindependent processor (such as a dedicated audio or video processor, asis common in the art for high-fidelity AN hardware interfaces) and, insome instances, volatile and/or non-volatile memory (e.g., RAM).

Although the system shown in FIG. 15 illustrates one specificarchitecture for a computing device 10 for implementing one or more ofthe aspects described herein, it is by no means the only devicearchitecture on which at least a portion of the features and techniquesdescribed herein may be implemented. For example, architectures havingone or any number of processors 13 may be used, and such processors 13may be present in a single device or distributed among any number ofdevices. In one aspect, a single processor 13 handles communications aswell as routing computations, while in other aspects a separatededicated communications processor may be provided. In various aspects,different types of features or functionalities may be implemented in asystem according to the aspect that includes a client device (such as atablet device or smartphone running client software) and server systems(such as a server system described in more detail below).

Regardless of network device configuration, the system of an aspect mayemploy one or more memories or memory modules (such as, for example,remote memory block 16 and local memory 11) configured to store data,program instructions for the general-purpose network operations, orother information relating to the functionality of the aspects describedherein (or any combinations of the above). Program instructions maycontrol execution of or comprise an operating system and/or one or moreapplications, for example. Memory 16 or memories 11, 16 may also beconfigured to store data structures, configuration data, encryptiondata, historical system operations information, or any other specific orgeneric non-program information described herein.

Because such information and program instructions may be employed toimplement one or more systems or methods described herein, at least somenetwork device aspects may include nontransitory machine-readablestorage media, which, for example, may be configured or designed tostore program instructions, state information, and the like forperforming various operations described herein. Examples of suchnontransitory machine-readable storage media include, but are notlimited to, magnetic media such as hard disks, floppy disks, andmagnetic tape; optical media such as CD-ROM disks; magneto-optical mediasuch as optical disks, and hardware devices that are speciallyconfigured to store and perform program instructions, such as read-onlymemory devices (ROM), flash memory (as is common in mobile devices andintegrated systems), solid state drives (SSD) and “hybrid SSD” storagedrives that may combine physical components of solid state and hard diskdrives in a single hardware device (as are becoming increasingly commonin the art with regard to personal computers), memristor memory, randomaccess memory (RAM), and the like. It should be appreciated that suchstorage means may be integral and non-removable (such as RAM hardwaremodules that may be soldered onto a motherboard or otherwise integratedinto an electronic device), or they may be removable such as swappableflash memory modules (such as “thumb drives” or other removable mediadesigned for rapidly exchanging physical storage devices),“hot-swappable” hard disk drives or solid state drives, removableoptical storage discs, or other such removable media, and that suchintegral and removable storage media may be utilized interchangeably.Examples of program instructions include both object code, such as maybe produced by a compiler, machine code, such as may be produced by anassembler or a linker, byte code, such as may be generated by forexample a JAVA™ compiler and may be executed using a Java virtualmachine or equivalent, or files containing higher level code that may beexecuted by the computer using an interpreter (for example, scriptswritten in Python, Perl, Ruby, Groovy, or any other scripting language).

In some aspects, systems may be implemented on a standalone computingsystem. Referring now to FIG. 16, there is shown a block diagramdepicting a typical exemplary architecture of one or more aspects orcomponents thereof on a standalone computing system. Computing device 20includes processors 21 that may run software that carry out one or morefunctions or applications of aspects, such as for example a clientapplication 24. Processors 21 may carry out computing instructions undercontrol of an operating system 22 such as, for example, a version ofMICROSOFT WINDOWS™ operating system, APPLE macOS™ or iOS™ operatingsystems, some variety of the Linux operating system, ANDROID™ operatingsystem, or the like. In many cases, one or more shared services 23 maybe operable in system 20, and may be useful for providing commonservices to client applications 24. Services 23 may for example beWINDOWS™ services, user-space common services in a Linux environment, orany other type of common service architecture used with operating system21. Input devices 28 may be of any type suitable for receiving userinput, including for example a keyboard, touchscreen, microphone (forexample, for voice input), mouse, touchpad, trackball, or anycombination thereof. Output devices 27 may be of any type suitable forproviding output to one or more users, whether remote or local to system20, and may include for example one or more screens for visual output,speakers, printers, or any combination thereof. Memory 25 may berandom-access memory having any structure and architecture known in theart, for use by processors 21, for example to run software. Storagedevices 26 may be any magnetic, optical, mechanical, memristor, orelectrical storage device for storage of data in digital form (such asthose described above, referring to FIG. 15). Examples of storagedevices 26 include flash memory, magnetic hard drive, CD-ROM, and/or thelike.

In some aspects, systems may be implemented on a distributed computingnetwork, such as one having any number of clients and/or servers.Referring now to FIG. 17, there is shown a block diagram depicting anexemplary architecture 30 for implementing at least a portion of asystem according to one aspect on a distributed computing network.According to the aspect, any number of clients 33 may be provided. Eachclient 33 may run software for implementing client-side portions of asystem; clients may comprise a system 20 such as that illustrated inFIG. 16. In addition, any number of servers 32 may be provided forhandling requests received from one or more clients 33. Clients 33 andservers 32 may communicate with one another via one or more electronicnetworks 31, which may be in various aspects any of the Internet, a widearea network, a mobile telephony network (such as CDMA or GSM cellularnetworks), a wireless network (such as Wi-Fi, WiMAX, LTE, and so forth),or a local area network (or indeed any network topology known in theart; the aspect does not prefer any one network topology over anyother). Networks 31 may be implemented using any known networkprotocols, including for example wired and/or wireless protocols.

In addition, in some aspects, servers 32 may call external services 37when needed to obtain additional information, or to refer to additionaldata concerning a particular call. Communications with external services37 may take place, for example, via one or more networks 31. In variousaspects, external services 37 may comprise web-enabled services orfunctionality related to or installed on the hardware device itself. Forexample, in one aspect where client applications 24 are implemented on asmartphone or other electronic device, client applications 24 may obtaininformation stored in a server system 32 in the cloud or on an externalservice 37 deployed on one or more of a particular enterprise's oruser's premises. In addition to local storage on servers 32, remotestorage 38 may be accessible through the network(s) 31.

In some aspects, clients 33 or servers 32 (or both) may make use of oneor more specialized services or appliances that may be deployed locallyor remotely across one or more networks 31. For example, one or moredatabases 34 in either local or remote storage 38 may be used orreferred to by one or more aspects. It should be understood by onehaving ordinary skill in the art that databases in storage 34 may bearranged in a wide variety of architectures and using a wide variety ofdata access and manipulation means. For example, in various aspects oneor more databases in storage 34 may comprise a relational databasesystem using a structured query language (SQL), while others maycomprise an alternative data storage technology such as those referredto in the art as “NoSQL” (for example, HADOOP CASSANDRA™, GOOGLEBIGTABLE™, and so forth). In some aspects, variant databasearchitectures such as column-oriented databases, in-memory databases,clustered databases, distributed databases, or even flat file datarepositories may be used according to the aspect. It will be appreciatedby one having ordinary skill in the art that any combination of known orfuture database technologies may be used as appropriate, unless aspecific database technology or a specific arrangement of components isspecified for a particular aspect described herein. Moreover, it shouldbe appreciated that the term “database” as used herein may refer to aphysical database machine, a cluster of machines acting as a singledatabase system, or a logical database within an overall databasemanagement system. Unless a specific meaning is specified for a givenuse of the term “database”, it should be construed to mean any of thesesenses of the word, all of which are understood as a plain meaning ofthe term “database” by those having ordinary skill in the art.

Similarly, some aspects may make use of one or more security systems 36and configuration systems 35. Security and configuration management arecommon information technology (IT) and web functions, and some amount ofeach are generally associated with any IT or web systems. It should beunderstood by one having ordinary skill in the art that anyconfiguration or security subsystems known in the art now or in thefuture may be used in conjunction with aspects without limitation,unless a specific security 36 or configuration system 35 or approach isspecifically required by the description of any specific aspect.

FIG. 18 shows an exemplary overview of a computer system 40 as may beused in any of the various locations throughout the system. It isexemplary of any computer that may execute code to process data. Variousmodifications and changes may be made to computer system 40 withoutdeparting from the broader scope of the system and method disclosedherein. Central processor unit (CPU) 41 is connected to bus 42, to whichbus is also connected memory 43, nonvolatile memory 44, display 47,input/output (I/O) unit 48, and network interface card (NIC) 53. I/Ounit 48 may, typically, be connected to peripherals such as a keyboard49, pointing device 50, hard disk 52, real-time clock 51, a camera 57,and other peripheral devices. NIC 53 connects to network 54, which maybe the Internet or a local network, which local network may or may nothave connections to the Internet. The system may be connected to othercomputing devices through the network via a router 55, wireless localarea network 56, or any other network connection. Also shown as part ofsystem 40 is power supply unit 45 connected, in this example, to a mainalternating current (AC) supply 46. Not shown are batteries that couldbe present, and many other devices and modifications that are well knownbut are not applicable to the specific novel functions of the currentsystem and method disclosed herein. It should be appreciated that someor all components illustrated may be combined, such as in variousintegrated applications, for example Qualcomm or Samsungsystem-on-a-chip (SOC) devices, or whenever it may be appropriate tocombine multiple capabilities or functions into a single hardware device(for instance, in mobile devices such as smartphones, video gameconsoles, in-vehicle computer systems such as navigation or multimediasystems in automobiles, or other integrated hardware devices).

In various aspects, functionality for implementing systems or methods ofvarious aspects may be distributed among any number of client and/orserver components. For example, various software modules may beimplemented for performing various functions in connection with thesystem of any particular aspect, and such modules may be variouslyimplemented to run on server and/or client components.

The skilled person will be aware of a range of possible modifications ofthe various aspects described above. Accordingly, the present inventionis defined by the claims and their equivalents.

What is claimed is:
 1. A system for the automatic configuration ofdevices by remote communication with a server, comprising: a merchantdatabase, wherein an account for a merchant is stored, each merchantaccount comprises authentication credentials and contact information; apreconfigured router; a server comprising at least a first plurality ofprogramming instructions stored in the at least one memory of, andoperating on at least one processor of, the computer system, wherein thefirst plurality of programming instructions, when operating on the atleast one processor, causes the computer system to: retrieve themerchant account from the merchant database; and send the merchantaccount to a QR module; a QR module, comprising a first plurality ofprogramming instructions stored in the memory and operating on theprocessor, wherein the first plurality of programming instructions, whenoperating on the processor, causes the computer system to: generate a QRcode for the merchant comprising authentication credentials; a messagingservice, comprising a second plurality of programming instructionsstored in the memory and operating on the processor, wherein the secondplurality of programming instructions, when operating on the processor,causes the computer system to: receive a notification of a successfuldelivery of physical devices to a merchant, wherein the notificationtriggers the messaging service to: generate a message comprising the QRcode; and transmit the message to the merchant using the merchant'scontact information, wherein the merchant subsequently scans the QRcode; a network manager, comprising a third plurality of programminginstructions stored in the memory and operating on the processor,wherein the third plurality of programming instructions, when operatingon the processor, causes the computer system to: receive theauthentication credentials; and initialize a compartmentalized networkbetween the merchant and the server through the preconfigured router;and a software manager, comprising a fourth plurality of programminginstructions stored in the memory and operating on the processor,wherein the fourth plurality of programming instructions, when operatingon the processor, causes the computer system to: send new wirelessoperating parameters to the preconfigured router over thecompartmentalized network; and send customized software packages tonetworked devices.
 2. The system of claim 1, wherein the QR code furthercomprises a link to download an application.
 3. The system of claim 2,wherein the application automatically connects to the preconfiguredrouter.
 4. The system of claim 1, where the wireless operatingparameters include new router firmware.
 5. The system of claim 1,wherein the software manager sends periodic software updates to thenetworked devices.
 6. The system of claim 1, wherein the customizedsoftware packages are dependent on the purpose of the networked device.7. A method for the automatic configuration of devices by remotecommunication with a server, comprising the steps of: receiving anotification of a successful delivery of physical devices to a merchant;generating a QR code from a merchant profile, the merchant profilecomprising authentication credentials and contact information of themerchant; generating a message comprising the QR code; transmitting themessage to the merchant using the merchant's contact information;receiving the authentication credentials; initializing acompartmentalized network between the merchant and the server; sendingnew wireless operating parameters to a networked device; and sendingcustomized software packages to a networked device.
 8. The method ofclaim 7, wherein the QR code further comprises a link to download anapplication.
 9. The method of claim 8, wherein the applicationautomatically connects to the preconfigured router.
 10. The method ofclaim 7, where the wireless operating parameters include new routerfirmware.
 11. The method of claim 7, wherein the software manager sendsperiodic software updates to the networked devices.
 12. The method ofclaim 7, wherein the customized software packages are dependent on thepurpose of the networked device.